Drake & Josh

Plot

The series revolves around two teenage stepbrothers, Drake Parker and Josh Nichols, who live in San Diego, California, with Drake's younger biological sister Megan and biological mother Audrey, and Josh's biological father Walter. Drake is cool and charismatic, having his own band and being popular with girls, yet can be narcissistic and absent-minded, while Josh is intellectual, clumsy, and awkward; yet very loving and caring. Josh starts working at a local movie theater in the second season, which becomes a key set location for the rest of the series. Despite their opposite personalities, Drake and Josh have shown multiple times throughout the series that they care deeply about each other and have each other's backs. The two boys are often involved in comedic escapades and challenges while handling various teenage problems.

Cast

Main article: List of Drake & Josh characters

Main

• Drake Bell as Drake Parker: Megan's biological brother, Josh's stepbrother, Audrey's biological son, and Walter's stepson
• Josh Peck as Josh Nichols: Drake's and Megan's stepbrother, Audrey's stepson, and Walter's biological son
• Nancy Sullivan as Audrey Parker-Nichols: Josh's stepmother, Drake's and Megan's biological mother
• Jonathan Goldstein as Walter Nichols: Josh's biological father, and Drake's and Megan's stepfather
• Miranda Cosgrove as Megan Parker: Drake's biological sister, Josh's stepsister, Audrey's biological daughter, and Walter's stepdaughter

Recurring

• Yvette Nicole Brown as Helen Dubois, manager of the Premiere movie theater (portrayed by Frances Callier in the episode "Little Diva")
• Jerry Trainor as "Crazy" Steve, employee at the Premiere
• Allison Scagliotti as Mindy Crenshaw, Josh's girlfriend and ex-science fair rival
• Alec Medlock as Craig Ramirez, Josh's friend
• Scott Halberstadt as Eric Blonowitz, Josh's other friend
• AnnaSophia Robb as Liza
• Jake Farrow as Gavin Mitchell, another employee at the Premiere
• Julia Duffy as Mrs. Hayfer, Drake and Josh's teacher at Bellview High School
• Roark Critchlow as Dr. Jeff Glazer, a doctor who lives across the street from Drake and Josh, who usually charges them a lot despite not doing much
• Cathy Shim as Leah, an employee at the Premiere who appears in the series' fourth season
• Johnny Lewis as Scottie, Molly Orr as Rina, and Jeremy Ray Valdez as Paul, the band members of Drake's band who appear in the series' first season

Episodes

Main article: List of Drake & Josh episodes

Production

Drake Bell and Josh Peck had previously acted together on The Amanda Show, created by Dan Schneider. Bell and Peck's differing personalities inspired Schneider to create a new show starring them as characters with traits similar to their own. An unaired pilot episode featured Stephen Furst as Walter Nichols, although he was busy with another project when Drake & Josh was picked up as a series, and Jonathan Goldstein was cast in the role instead. A house in Los Angeles' Encino neighborhood was used for exterior shots of the family's home, while interior scenes were shot on a sound stage at the Nickelodeon on Sunset studios in Hollywood. Tribune Studios in Hollywood was also used as a filming location.

Production was suspended in late December 2005, after Bell's injury in a car crash, prior to which he had filmed three episodes of the fourth season. Bell's accident was the result of a driver falling asleep at the wheel and colliding head-on with Bell's 1966 Mustang, which had no seat belts or airbags, resulting in extensive facial injuries. Filming resumed in March 2006 The following month, Nickelodeon greenlit an additional seven episodes for the fourth season, and Bell and Peck signed on to direct several episodes. According to Schneider, the show ended due to a collective decision from the creative forces behind the show.

The profession of the family's mother is never revealed on the show, although Schneider had written dialogue into the series finale that would have revealed her profession at a catering business. The scene was filmed, but Schneider ultimately chose to remove it during editing. Schneider said, "On the one hand, I thought it was funny to finally reveal it, so casually, in the very last episode – there was something ironic about that. But then I decided that, because fans always seemed to have fun trying to figure it out (what 'Mom's' name and job were), it would be better to 'keep the bit going' for eternity, by never revealing it in any episode."

Release

Broadcast

Drake & Josh aired on Nickelodeon and premiered in the United States on January 11, 2004. The final episode aired on September 16, 2007.

Home media

Below is a list of official DVD and VHS releases of Drake & Josh.

Reception

The series premiere was watched by 3.2 million viewers, Nickelodeon's highest-rated series premiere in nearly 10 years. As of 2006, Drake & Josh ranked consistently among the 10 most-watched cable shows of the week, According to Schneider, Drake & Josh had its highest ratings in its final season.

Awards and nominations

Films

The series received two television films. Drake & Josh Go Hollywood premiered on January 6, 2006. In the film, Drake and Josh are left at home in San Diego after their parents go on a ten-day cruise. The boys are told to take Megan to the airport so she can visit her friend in Denver, but they accidentally send her on a flight to Los Angeles instead. Drake and Josh go to Hollywood to get Megan back, but end up stopping a multibillion-dollar heist and booking a guest-spot for Drake on TRL. According to TV Guide, it was the highest-rated program on all of cable during its opening week.

Merry Christmas, Drake & Josh premiered on December 5, 2008. Michael Grossman directed the film, and Schneider returned as executive producer. In the film, Drake and Josh try to give a foster family "the best Christmas ever". The premiere of Merry Christmas, Drake & Josh broke the record of most viewers for the premiere of a Nickelodeon film with 9.10 million viewers, a title previously held by iGo to Japan.

Other media

Music

Video games

Two video games based on Drake & Josh have been released on the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS. Both of them were published by THQ and released in 2007.

Books

A book series based on Drake & Josh has been published by children's publisher Scholastic since 2006. The books are written by author Laurie McElroy.

A Cine-Manga version titled, "Match Made in Heaven", was released by TokyoPop in 2006. The book was based on the first two episodes of the first season.

Online videos

Beginning in December 2016, Bell and other cast members released a series of short online videos titled Where's Walter? Bell, Sullivan, and Yvette Nicole Brown reprised their roles for the videos, which involve a search for Walter after he goes missing.

Possible revival

In March 2019, Bell announced that he and Peck were working on a Drake & Josh revival that would feature both of them reprising their roles. The proposed project would have featured similar characters and scenarios in a more adult, comedic way. At the time, Bell and Peck were in discussions with several networks about the project.

In October 2021, it was reported that the original proposed revival had been cancelled, as a result of production delays and Bell's guilty plea to his recent criminal charges.

In March 2022, Bell and his wife Janet stated that the reboot show they had pitched would be called Josh & Drake. Ultimately, the idea was shelved due to creative differences. The show's script was said to have been written by Peck. Janet stated, "Josh wrote Drake as a failed musician and Josh wrote himself as a real estate agent. OK, that's fine, but Drake is a musician in real life, so it wouldn't make sense." Bell added, "I just asked him to change a couple things and he couldn't and my wife wouldn't let me do it."

In March 2023, Cosgrove told E! News "nothing's off the table" in regards to a possible revival.

In August 2024, Bell in turn stated that he would be open to a revival reprising his starring role but with a new setting with sets of characters in a buddy comedy setting, differing from the original series.

In March 2025, Bell was interviewed by E! The Rundown, where he confirmed that there have been conversations about potentially doing something with Peck once again. This came just a few days after they reunited for Peck's Good Guys Podcast.

Notes

References

References

1. (April 9, 2019). "20 Shocking Moments That Were Cut from Your Favorite Disney & Nickelodeon Shows: The Mom's Name and Profession Were Revealed on "Drake & Josh"".
2. Kronke, David. (January 11, 2004). "The Daily News Watch-O-Rama Highlights and Lowlights of the Coming TV Week". [[Los Angeles Daily News]].
3. Rogers, John. (May 10, 2004). "Opposites Attract Viewers on 'Drake & Josh'". [[Los Angeles Times]].
4. Grant, Stacey. (November 30, 2016). "8 Unaired TV Pilots We Still Need to See".
5. (April 9, 2019). "20 Shocking Moments That Were Cut from Your Favorite Disney & Nickelodeon Shows: There Was a Different Dad on "Drake & Josh"".
6. Joest, Mick. (December 18, 2017). "The Drake and Josh House Is Up For Sale, and It's Pretty Expensive".
7. Joest, Mick. (June 4, 2018). "The Drake and Josh House Is Being Demolished, Watch Josh Peck's Reaction".
8. Shewfelt, Raechal. (July 9, 2018). "Drake Bell Goes to Visit the 'Drake & Josh' House and Finds Out It's Gone".
9. Heller, Corinne. (July 8, 2018). "Drake Bell Visits Drake & Josh House and Discovers It's Gone".
10. Muttalib, Bashirah. (January 12, 2005). "Spain's Studio Rodeo".
11. (January 4, 2006). "Nickelodeon Star Drake Bell Injured in Car Crash". [[Fox News]].
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16. (May 1, 2006). "'Drake & Josh' Season Extended to 20". [[United Press International.
17. Kissell, Rick. (January 13, 2004). "Fox, CBS play grid aces, NBC a trump".
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19. Schneider, Dan. (September 12, 2007). "FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions (and My Answers!)". [[Blogspot]].
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23. "Prepare to Be Slimed...As the Australian Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards Nominees Are Announced!".
24. "2007 Host/Nominees Release / Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2007 Press Kit".
25. "2007 KCA Winners Release / Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2007 Press Kit".
26. (October 20, 2007). "In Full: Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards UK Winners".
27. "Nickelodeon's Australian Kids' Choice Awards / 2007 KCA Around the World / Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2007 Press Kit".
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30. "Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards – 2008 Winners List – Pictures and Video".
31. POPSUGAR Celebrity UK. "Winners And Photos From Inside The 2008 Nickelodeon UK Kids' Choice Awards, Feat Evanna Lynch, Bonnie Wright, Josh Peck, McFly".
32. "WWE Corporate – WWE® Superstar John Cena® to Co-Host at Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2008".
33. "2009 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards Winners!".
34. "Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards 2010 Winners List & Orange Carpet Video!".
35. (June 12, 2008). "The Holidays Come Early for Drake & Josh Fans!". Viacom.
36. HowloftheJackal. (June 23, 2011). "Drake and Josh – "I Found A Way"".
37. Grant, Stacey. (December 30, 2016). "Drake Parker's Dad Is 'Missing' and He Needs Your Help to Find Him".
38. Grant, Stacey. (January 11, 2017). "Even More Drake & Josh Stars Reunite To Help Find Walter".
39. Grant, Stacey. (February 22, 2017). "Drake Bell Is Being 'Stalked' by Drake & Josh's Walter in Shocking Turn of Events".
40. Respers, Lisa. (March 25, 2019). "New 'Drake & Josh' project isn't". [[Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.]].
41. Shoemaker, Whitney. (March 24, 2019). "'Drake & Josh' stars' new project isn't a reboot, Josh Peck confirms". [[AltPress]].
42. Aquilina, Tyler. (March 15, 2019). "Drake Bell Says a 'Drake & Josh' Reboot Is in the Works: 'We Have a Great Idea'".
43. (October 19, 2021). "Drake & Josh Reunion With Original Cast Cancelled". unCrazed.
44. Heller, Corinne. (March 20, 2022). "Drake Bell Addresses Josh Peck Rift and Drake & Josh Reboot". [[E! Online]].
45. Heller, Corinne. (March 6, 2023). "Is Miranda Cosgrove up for a Drake & Josh Revival? She Says". [[E! Online]].
46. (August 18, 2024). "Drake & Josh Revival Chances Get Surprising Response From Drake Bell: "Let's Hit 'Em With A Bang"".
47. (March 28, 2025). "Drake Bell gives update on Drake and Josh reboot after reunion with Josh Peck".